Bradlees pumps up - men's sport clothes and accessories - Special Supplement: AM

Discount Store News, Sept 7, 1992

Led by the sales of logo-emblazed collegiate and professional apparel and accessories, activewear represents the largest classification in men's wear at Braintree, Mass.-based Bradlees.

The strength of licensed goods at Bradlees isn't an isolated case. That merchandise is booming throughout the retailing spectrum, and will generate billions in sales this year.

Referring to team-related items, Cecilia Swartz, vice president, general merchandise manager says: "That business has been very, very strong, and it is significant that it is no longer contingent upon the local teams, which don't necessarily prove to be the best sellers. It's the teams that have the best logos and the hottest colors that bring in the sales."

National prominence and the athletic prowess of individual competitors, such as Michael Jordon, for instance, also are major purchasing influencers. The best selling cap at Bradlees newly renovated Horseheads, N.Y., store, hundreds of miles from Chicago, is embellished with the snorting emblem of the Bulls.

The company's entire men's activewear business at Bradlees is showing modest-under 10 percent increases-year-to-day, but the graphic team oriented merchandise is outpacing the rest of the pack. "The college/pro groups are posting substantial double-digit increases," Swartz says.

Accessories, such as sports bags and caps are the driving factors of the licensed business, although Bradlees carries a full range of tops and bottoms sporting the mascots and emblems of a variety of professional teams and universities.

The business gained its strength in boys' wear in seasons past ,but this July a cohesive presentation of pro/ college items--with heavy emphasison sports bags--was rolled out in men's wear departments throughout the 127-store chain.

At the store's Horseheads unit, which is an example of Bradlees' latest design, a long-run, 10-foot high wall featuring licensed sports apparel gives the classification a commanding presence.

Currently, merchandise is the largest segment of the business at Bradlees, but according to Swartz, "the pro portion showed greater percentage increases this year."

While licensed sports apparel is a boon for Bradlees activewear areas, it doesn't represent strictly incremental gains for the category as a whole. It is offsetting a slumping beach pants business, which last year was an extraordinary contributor to the bottom line.

As might be expected the other big gun in Bradlees' activewear area is fleece. "We expect to have a terrific fleece business this year," says Swartz, who this year increased the amount of heavyweight (9 oz.) fleece on the men's wear floor after a very successful initial offering during 1991. Because the heavyweight merchandise did well in men's wear, it has recently been added to boys' wear and women's wear assortments.

Key fleece brands at Bradlees include Hanes and, new for 1992, Brittania. The company also carries Lee brand sweats. That merchandise is destined to be replaced by another label in 1993 because The Lee Co. plans to no longer sell Lee label merchandise-in fleece or denim--to discount stores. Anchored by Everlast, Spalding, and Bradlees' own Bog Sport and b.i. Gear labels,the company is also is committed to merchandising active separates.

The strength of Bradlees' men's activewear department is a sign that the store is on the merchandising money. They're serving the needs of men's wear customers who traditionally shop the mass merchants for casual, after-working hours apparel.